Dan’s Corner

I take a lot of pride in the fact that I work with a firm that allows and even encourages me to be active in the community. I wish to take this opportunity to update you on the great time we had at the second annual Tour de Crawdad and the Price Cutter Charity Championship.

April 26th started out with a little bit of rain but quickly cleared up and turned into a beautiful day. We had 150 riders, up from 90 last year, participate in the Tour de Crawdad. Riders had a choice of three routes and it finished with a huge crawdad boil with all the trimmings. Most important was that we were able to raise over $7,000.00 for Champions Committed to Kids, a fantastic charity that helps bring a smile to children going through a tough time. I have been active with CCK for several years and currently serve as vice president of the board. Check out the pictures below and mark your calendars for the last Saturday in April every year. We fed around 200 people and the event will only continue to grow and improve. In my business I don’t get to use the word “guarantee”. But in this case I guarantee you will have a great time and will also help out a great cause.

I’ve also been fortunate enough to help sponsor the Price Cutter Charity Championship golf tournament on August 7-10. This was my fourth year of having a corporate tent that sits right next to the 18th green. Missouri State University is a huge supporter of CCK and we have children on both the Bears and Lady Bears basketball teams. On Saturday, August 9th we had head coach Paul Lusk and head coach Kellie Harper visit us in the tent to help raise awareness for CCK. By being a sponsor, I had VIP passes that got guests in all four days, provide complimentary breakfast and lunch, and also free beer and soft drinks. And we got to watch some fantastic golf! Here are a couple of pictures from years past. I am already looking forward to 2015; please give me a call or email if you would like to go, then stop by to visit me in the tent!
Thanks for your business, your friendship, and to many of you, thanks for both. Have a great rest of the summer.

The Story of 2 Charts: The one we can’t take our eyes off of, and the one we can’t bear to look at:
The recent history of the stock market is impressive- almost 20% per year average gain for the past five years. Many people don’t think it will continue. But for that matter, most people didn’t think these five years would give returns of almost 4x, and so few individual investors have benefited. It cannot be denied. Looking backwards, we have just seen an enormous opportunity to nearly double your money- twice.

If you aren’t comfortable getting into the market at these new record high levels, you aren’t alone. In so many ways the market has appeared to get ahead of itself. The level of potential threats to our economy are significant and real. It seems like a comfortable thing to sit on the sidelines, and wait in cash and not be worried by the gyrations of the stock market. But can you afford to?

The Chart that we hate to look at is below. It shows how prices of critical things we need to live on have increased. On average, the stuff we buy has gotten 25% more expensive since 2000. In the case of Medical Care, prices have risen more than half in the last 13 years. What happens when the greatest generation is also the Senior Generation? How can someone keep up with inflation, when keeping up with daily life is such a challenge? Whether the stock market goes up or down, and even if the various conflicts overseas inflate horribly, the one thing that will trudge on is the continual scourge of inflation, eating away at your nest egg that you depend on.

The only way to combat inflation is to put your money into something that grows, and that means taking on risk. Not surprisingly, most investors want both great performance and a smooth ride-no one likes risk. But we all want the reward.

In our professional experience, the only way to take on risk comfortably is to have a plan. It is harder than ever to predict what the future direction of stock prices will be. Waiting for a specific market event to happen is a common plan for investors, like a specific target Dow number, or a reduction in Middle East violence. That is a hope, not a plan.

Inflation is forecasted to increase, maybe by a lot. At Cascade, we are planning on this, and our clients are well prepared. Good investment plans are custom to the individual, and require constant revision and analysis using the latest tools and information available. We enjoy helping good people to Plan Wisely, Invest With Confidence, and ENJOY LIFE.